The Full Moon's Sonata
by Raquelita
Summary: Sonata James knew Remus Lupin wouldn't fall for a girl like her - just as surely as Remus knew she wouldn't fall for a guy like him. But as an unlikely friendship forms and danger becomes real, the two may find that sometimes, two wrongs can make a right.
1. A meeting of chance

A/N: This is my first story about Remus Lupin, so reviews and encouragement are greatly appreciated! I'm pretty excited about it actually, so here we go…

_"People can change Harper! I'm not the same girl that I was last year."_

_"Bullshit. You're exactly the same. How many times have we been through this Sonata? Honestly, how many times? You keep telling me you've changed and then you just go right back to where you started. I don't have to put up with this."_

_"As if you're so perfect? Newsflash, you're just as bad as I am. Maybe in a different way, but still. You have no right to get all self righteous on me, as if you would be doing me a favor by taking me back? Well guess what? I DON'T WANT YOU ANYMORE!"_

Sonata James sat in a compartment on the Hogwarts Express, alone. She was reliving the fight she and Harper had had back in July for what felt like the hundredth time. Hell, it probably was the hundredth time. The pair had broken up and gotten back together so much that everyone had lost count – but that fight had ended it all. Sonata knew she wasn't perfect, but she also knew she couldn't be with someone who had no faith in her. Harper had his reasons for doubt, but the fact that he had just given up on her … Sonata shook the thoughts out of her head. The honest truth was that she had very little faith in herself these days. If not even her boyfriend had believed she could clean up her act, then who would?

The opening of the compartment door startled her.

"Sorry," said an almost musical voice, "I was just wondering if I could sit here. I, erm, I can't seem to find my friends."

Sonata turned and faced the owner of the voice. She recognized him from her Potions class last year, and they had both been prefects as well – she in Ravenclaw, he in Gryffindor. His name was Something Lupin. Tall and lean, he had dark sandy hair that brushed his collar and soft brown eyes. Sonata smiled a little in spite of herself – if she had to have company, at least it was handsome company.

"Sure," she replied, "take a seat."

"Thanks."

He sat down opposite her and turned to stare out the window, where a gentle rain blurred the passing scenery.

"Oh," Sonata whispered, so quietly that he didn't hear her above the noise of the train.

Across the left side of Lupin's face, from his hairline down under his jaw, ran a thin reddish scar that Sonata was certain hadn't been there last year. There was another one, smaller and almost imperceptible, that ran closer to his ear. It looked as though he'd been attacked by a wild animal.

"So," she said, attempting to make conversation, "You look familiar. We had potions together last year didn't we?"

Lupin looked at her for a moment before recognition dawned, "Yeah, you were a prefect too weren't you?" She nodded."Yeah," he said, " I thought I knew you from somewhere. You look different though."

"It's the hair," Sonata replied, lifting a slightly curly dark brown strand from her shoulder, "I cut most of it off a few weeks ago."

"It used to be half way down your back didn't it?"

"Good memory. Yeah, it did. But I just …" she thought about Harper and paused for a moment. He had loved her long hair, "… I just needed a change."

Lupin nodded, "It looks good."

"Thanks."

"How did you do on your O.W.L s? If you don't mind my asking."

Sonata shrugged, "Not bad. I won't be returning to Potions though, I can tell you that."

Lupin looked slightly disappointed for a moment, but it passed so quickly Sonata thought she must have imagined it.

"How about you?" she asked.

"Sadly, I'll be facing a few more years of Slughorn. It shouldn't be too bad though. It's just that I don't know quite what I want to do yet, so keeping my options open is probably a good idea. "

Sonata nodded as the slightly awkward silence of two people who only have one thing in common settled between them. Seconds later, the door of the compartment burst open, and in toppled James Potter and Sirius Black. Sonata would have recognized the pair anywhere. Quidditch stars and Hogwarts legends in the making – both on the pitch and off. Sirius, in particular, was shameless.

"Remus!" Sirius barked, "Finally, we thought we'd never find you mate."

Sonata cursed herself. Remus, of course! That was his name.

"Me? I thought I'd never find you. We were supposed to meet in the usual compartment right?" Remus asked.

"Well, yes…" James looked slightly sheepish, "But then we saw Evans heading toward the other end of the train, so I convinced Sirius we should go to because I had to – "

"Say no more," Remus replied with a laugh, getting up and collecting his things from the overhead storage.

"I'm sorry," he apologized to Sonata, "But if Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum are left alone to their own devices much longer I'm sure chaos will ensue. And Evans will probably murder one of them."

She laughed lightly. James Potter's undying love for Lily Evans was just as infamous as he was. "Don't worry about it."

At her words, Sirius turned and took notice of her for the first time.

"Oohhhh," he said, "I didn't realize Prongsy and I were … _interrupting _something."

Remus blushed slightly, " Weren't we leaving?"

"You know Moony, she's really a looker. I would keep my eye on her – " Sirius winked at Sonata, "I know I will be. Absolutely gorgeous. Pray tell, fair lady, what is your name?"

"Sonata James," she replied, allowing Sirius to kiss her hand, "And I already know who you are Sirius Black, so I think I just saved both of us a quickie in the broom closet. Consider me unconquest-able."

Sirius looked slighty flabbergasted as James and Remus chuckled. Seeing Sirius knocked down a few pegs was always worth its weight in amusement.

"And on that _note_," James entered in smoothly "- if you'll pardon the pun Sonata, we will be leaving you."

Remus was the last to exit and offered her an apologetic smile, "I know they can be a bit much, but –"

Sonata shook her head with a laugh, "No need to apologize for your friends. I like them." She gave him a friendly smile, "See you later then?"

"Yeah," he replied, and was halfway out the door before he turned one more time, "By the way, Sonata is a beautiful name."

**A/N: So, what do you think? Reviews are like lemonade on a hot summer day!**


	2. He thinks, she thinks

**A/N: Chapter 2, up and running!**

Hogwarts was ablaze with thousands of candles. Sonata wandered through the chattering crowd that had gathered outside the great hall and waited for the doors to open. Just then, a shrill voice cut through the noise.

"SONNY!!!"

Sonata smiled and turned around. Running toward her were her two best friends, Genevie Lyons and Alyssa Marian. They were the only people who could get away with calling her Sonny, and she would know Genevie's voice anywhere.

The three met in a giant hug, jumping up and down and squealing in excitement until they realized – far too late – that everyone had turned to stare. Sonata just rolled her eyes at the crowd.

"How are you, how was the rest of your summer?" Alyssa asked.

"How are you doing?" added Genevie, "You cut off all your hair!"

"Hah, yeah. You know me. Something bad happens, I change my hair. The rest of my summer was good, and I'm okay, really. It's still rough, but I'm surviving. How about you guys though?"

Genevie and Alyssa exchanged a look that clearly showed they didn't believe Sonata was okay after the breakup, but they continued on anyway, sharing stories about what had happened in the month since they'd all seen each other and trying to pretend that their summer visit hadn't been to save Sonata from all but destroying herself after things with Harper finally ended. Even though it was Sonata who had finally walked away, she had still been devastated after what Harper had said to her, what he really thought of her.

"How's Harper?" Sonata finally asked. Alyssa had been good friends with him long before Sonata had been his girlfriend, and she remained friends with him. Sonata was glad – after all, the break up had been mostly her fault anyway.

"He's, um, he's fine," Alyssa stumbled.

"Think he'll ever want to be friends? I miss the four of us hanging out."

Alyssa shook her head, "We've been over this before Sonny. I really don't want to talk about it again. You broke his heart when you lied about what happened during those few weeks you weren't together. What you did was wrong, but he took things too far. I don't understand why you would still want to be friends with someone who was so cruel to you."

"So that's a no then?" Sonata asked, trying and failing to shrug it off, "I can't explain it Al, there's just a part of me that still misses him. I'm sorry if I've been bothering you about it. I'll stop."

Alyssa gave her a relieved smile, "Thanks."

"So," Genevie popped in, "In case you two crazy kids haven't noticed, we're now some of the only people left out here. The doors are open, let's get in there and get some food!"

Arm in arm, the trio entered the great hall and hurried over to the Ravenclaw table, passing by the Gryffindors as they went. Remus caught Sonata's eye as she passed and gave a small wave. She smiled back, but he noticed that for some reason she looked upset. _Not that it's any of my business, _he thought with a shake of his head, _all we did was share a train compartment for a few minutes. But still … _He turned and looked at her again as she sat down, her dark hair shining in the candlelight.

"She really is something," the voice of Sirius pulled him out of his reverie, "I can't believe I've never noticed her before."

Remus turned back to the table, "We had Potions with her all last year Padfoot."

"Well that would explain it," Sirius replied with a laugh, "I never went to Potions."

James rolled his eyes, "She's off limits mate. It looks like Remus has already made his claim…"

"What? Oh, no," Remus could feel himself blush slightly, "I haven't claimed anyone James. She's just, she's just interesting. I thnk maybe we can be friends. That's all."

"Whatever you say Moony," but the look in James' eye told Remus he didn't believe a word of that story.

"What's going on?" Peter piped up. He had just come running in late, for reasons the other three didn't bother asking about. Typical Wormtail.

"Oh, just another woman," Sirius replied, "Only this one seems to have her eye on Remus. 'Course he won't do anything about it, but still."

"She doesn't have her eye on me," Remus said defensively.

"Oh really, then what do you call that?" James nodded in Sonata's direction, and Remus turned around just in time to see her give a small smile and look away. He couldn't help but smile himself.

"She'd never be interested in someone like me," he said simply, "She was dating Harper Maroni last year. You know, the Keeper for the Ravenclaw team? And he and I are nothing alike. For all I know, they still _are _dating. And anyway, we spent what, all of five minutes together?"

"Love at first sight!" Sirius proclaimed loudly.

Remus rolled his eyes, but looked over at her again. He couldn't help but hope she wasn't with Harper anymore.

"He'd never be interested in a girl like me," Sonata was saying to Alyssa and Genevie, "I mean, Remus Lupin is an actual good guy. Good guys never like me. I'm a jerk magnet, remember?"

Genevie shook her head. Sonata had filled them in on what happened on the train, and she and Alyssa had both noticed the way the pair were shooting glances at each other across the hall when they thought the other couldn't see.

"I don't know Sonny, sometimes opposites attract."

"It was a few minutes of conversation on a train, Genevie. And anyway, if Harper couldn't love me, there's no way someone like Remus could even be interested. He's too good for me."

"You deserve the best. There's no such thing as too good."

Sonata shrugged, "After all the shit I pulled with Harper? I would end up tearing Remus Lupin to shreads. And then I'd hate myself even more," she looked back over at him and shook her head, "I think it's best if I just let it go. Maybe we can be friends."

Alyssa and Genevie looked at each other, then back at Sonata. She was not exactly famous for having male friends –at least, male friends who actually stayed _friends_. There was usually at least one hook up invovled with each of them. Sometimes it didn't change anything, but in other cases the friendship had been ruined forever.

"Friends?" Alyssa asked doubtfully.

"Hey!" Sonata said defensively, "I've changed, remember? I wouldn't do something like that now. I can't believe I ever did. And I was actually proud of it …" she laughed a little bit, "I guess I used to be like the female version of Sirius Black, huh?"

"Pretty much," Genevie replied, "But we loved you anyway, and we love you now. And Harper is about ten seats down on your right but don't be obvious about looking, I just thought you'd want to know."

She slid the last sentence in without changing the tone of her voice, and Sonata was slightly taken aback at realizing Harper was so close to her. The truth was that she had been keeping at eye out for him. They were in the same house, which would make avoiding each other impossible. And there he glanced down the table and saw him picking at his food, talking with a friend next to him. Her stomach gave an uncomfortable twist.

"He doesn't look so good," she said without thinking.

"I told you Sonny, you broke his heart. I know he won't admit it, but he hasn't been handling things well," Alyssa said, then quickly added, "but you're not to blame. In the end you did the right thing, coming clean. And he was a jerk to you. It's his own problem if he can't deal with it all in a healthy way."

Sonata nodded, but part of her didn't believe her friend. She'd heard occassional reports from Alyssa for the last month of summer about how Harper was doing. The two lived in the same town, so it was easy for Alyssa to keep an eye on him. And, from Sonata's understanding, someone sure as hell had to. He was falling apart. He had always been a little dramatic, but this hurt her to see. She wished he would pull it together, at least then she wouldn't feel so guilty. But Alyssa was right. It wasn't her fault. How he dealt with things was his business. They were over now.

"Anyway, how do your schedules look?" She asked, changing the subject.

The conversation turned to what subjects the three had signed up for this year, but as they talked Sonata found herself hoping, more than just a little, that Remus Lupin would show up in at least one of her classes. It was strange, after so many months of thinking of no one but Harper, to find another boy inside her head. But she liked it. It felt like a fresh start. And even if she could never let anything happen between them, at least she would have a new friend.

_A girl can never have enough friends right? _She told herself.

But Sonata knew, deep down, that being just friends with Remus would be hard as hell.

**A/N: So, second chapter done! Thank you for the reviews, please keep them coming! **


	3. A late night snack

**A/N: I now submit, for your consideration and literary enjoyment, chapter 3…**

_"You lied to me." Harper's voice portrayed no emotion._

_"Yes," Sonata replied, "But I'm being honest with you now. Doesn't that count for something? We weren't even together when it happened, I never cheated on you –"_

_"He's my fucking MATE Sonata!"_

_"I was friends with him first," she muttered under her breath, as though that made some difference._

_"I just can't believe you would do this. No, not that you would do it – I get it, it was a wedding, you had both been drinking – but then you lied to me? You lied to my face of your own free will and told me nothing had happened. You reassured me. What kind of person can look into the eyes of someone they love and lie?"_

_Sonata had tears in her eyes now, "I'm so sorry Harper. I was just so scared of losing you. If I told you the truth I thought you would leave me."_

_"Then why come clean now?" he asked, anger biting his voice._

_"Because I can't lie to you," she said, "I can't. I love you too much."_

_"This is sick Sonata. You say you love me, yet you do things like this?"_

_"It was a mistake! You think I don't regret it? He won't even look at me anymore. Our friendship is ruined."_

_"Good."_

_A tear slid down Sonata's face. She still loved Harper – at least she thought she did – but he was cutting her to pieces. And he knew it. _

_"Please forgive me," she whispered simply, "You know I can't be without you. We need each other."_

_" This is so typical of you Sonata. You go out and do something stupid after you tell me for the millionth time that you've changed. You aren't coming clean for me. You're coming clean for him. You probably don't even feel bad."_

"How dare you?" Sonata practically yelled. He had finally struck a nerve. "How dare you say I don't feel bad? Do you want me to prove it to you? I can't eat, I can't sleep. I'm falling apart, what more proof do you need? Look at me."

_And he did. He looked at the girl before him and realized suddenly how much she had wasted away. Her clothes hung off of her thin frame, there was no more light in her eyes. She looked like someone who had given up hope._

_Harper took a deep breath. "All right," he said, "I'll take you back. This is the last shot Sonata."_

_A wave of relief swept over her as she kissed him. As long as she had Harper, Sonata knew she could get through anything._

A wave of nausea swept over Sonata as she sat up in bed. The dream, once again the dream of the fight between her and Harper at the beginning of the summer. It made her sick to think of the way she had groveled to get him back – the way he had acted as though he were a saint to even give her another chance. A final chance. It was wrong for her to lie to him, but it was also wrong of him to hold it over her head. Harper was not a forgiving person; he remembered every wrong done to him, and held grudges like no one she knew. There had been a good three months between that argument and the final break up, but none of those months had really been good. She could see now how he had manipulated her, whether intentionally or not. Sonata had always been an independent person, but when she was with Harper she felt as though she couldn't so much as breath without asking his permission. It had never seemed like a bad thing until it was all over, until she finally realized what Alyssa had meant when she said that Harper was a good friend, but an awful boyfriend.

Guilt had become Sonata's closest friend for a long time – even now she sometimes found it difficult to deal with the way things had gone between her and Harper – particularly because he wasn't doing well.

Unable to get back to sleep, she slid on a robe and a pair of slippers and crept quietly out of the Ravenclaw dormitories. It was 3am, and a snack, she decided, was exactly what she needed to take her mind off things.

It had become ridiculously easy for Sonata to sneak around the castle at night. It was a habit that had started three years ago, and one that she had become quite skilled at since. The rounds made by the professors and ghosts were methodical and timed to a T, so it had only been a matter of figuring exactly what places they weren't going to be at exactly what times they weren't going to be there. Just then, Sonata heard the sound of footsteps.

"Alohamora," she whispered quietly, and the door to the nearest classroom clicked open. Hidden inside, she glanced through the small window at the top of the door to see Professor Dumbledore and another man she didn't recognize pass by.

"…back to the dormitory," Dumbledore was saying, "I'm so glad you were able to fix the problems with the willow Dr. Elbertson – thank you for coming at this obscure hour."

"Of course Dumbledore, of course. I understand the need for privacy. I'm glad he could be with us to test it again. Quite gracious of him."

"Yes, you know for a young man it's really quite remarkable …"

The voices faded away, and Sonata re-imerged quietly, wondering why on earth an apparent magical plant specialist would be at Hogwarts at 3 in the morning. Dumbledore was prone to his eccentricities though, so she supposed that it probably wasn't so very odd.

Making her way down the hall toward a large painting of fruit, Sonata was surprised to hear her stomach grumble loudly. _I didn't think I was that hungry_, she thought, putting her hand on her belly. The sound came again, and this time she realized that it was not, in fact, from her.

"Shit," she whispered, and darted quickly into a nearby alcove, just in case the sound belonged to one of the professors, hungry after patrol.

"Ow!" the voice made Sonata jump a mile back into the hall, putting a hand over her mouth to stifle a surprised yelp.

"Sonata, is that you?"

To her surprise, Remus Lupin emerged from the alcove, a smile on his face. "Sorry," he said, "I didn't mean to scare you. But I wasn't expecting anyone, and you kind of stepped on my foot." He motioned down, and Sonata noticed with some surprise that he was wearing shoes, not slippers, with his pajamas. Not only that, but they were caked with mud. _Strange, _she thought to herself.

"Going for a walk around the grounds?" she asked, still looking at the offending footwear.

"What? Oh-" Remus laughed guiltily, "Yeah. I um, I sleepwalk sometimes. I'm remarkably clever at it apparently, as on occasion I actually manage to get out of the castle."

Sonata nodded, the look on her face clearly conveying doubt. If Remus had been outside, surely he would have been seen by Dumbledore and Elbertson…? _Then again_, she reasoned, _there are plenty of other entrances into the castle. But security is heightned this year. Is there any way he actually could've gotten out?_

"Well anyway, were you on your way to the kitchens?"

"Yeah," she replied, tucking her suspicions away. It hardly mattered after all. "I couldn't sleep. Bad dream."

Remus nodded, and the two continued on to the painting on the wall ahead of them, tickling the large green pear once they arrived. The painting swung open, and they stepped into the warm kitchens.

"Good evening sir, miss," said one of the passing house elves, "What can we be doing for you?"

"Just a little peckish," Remus replied, "Are there some leftovers from the feast?"

The little elf nodded, and sucrried off for a few moments before returning with a few friends, bearing goblets of pumpkin juice and the remains of a roasted turkey along with some apple tart.

"Oh wow," Sonata said, "Thank you. Really, this is lovely."

The house elves bowed away, returning to their work.

"Up early, aren't they?" Remus asked, cutting himself a slice of turkey.

"Not really – I think they usually have to start breakfast by this hour. Lots of people to feed."

He nodded, his mouth full.

The two ate and chatted lightly, happy to find that they had Transfiguration and Arithmancy together this term.

"I'm surprised we haven't had class with each other before," Sonata remarked.

"Well, they don't often put Ravenclaw and Gryffindor together in the lower years do they? It only now that we're choosing our own classes based on O.W.L.s. Not that I'm complaining," he added, giving her a shy smile that made Sonata's stomach flip flop.

As they stepped back out of the portrait and into the hall, a question occurred to Remus.

"You mentioned a bad dream," he said, "Do you want to talk about it?"

Sonata shrugged, "It's nothing really."

Remus eyed her carefully before saying confidently, "You're lying."

"I am not!"

"Yes you are. You're not looking me in the eye."

"We're walking side by side. If I looked you in the eye I would trip and fall on my arse."

He laughed, "Fair enough. But still," he stopped walking and turned her to face him, "Is everything okay?"

If it were anyone else asking that question, Sonata would have told them they were taking this way too seriously and it was nothing. But it wasn't anyone else. It was Remus. And she knew that he could tell this was important. Otherwise he wouldn't be pushing it.

"Just, just a dream about Harper."

"Your boyfriend?"

It was Sonata's turn to laugh, "Not anymore. That's just it actually. I keep having these dreams about what happened between us. All of the bad stuff. I was really horrible to him sometimes."

"I'm sure you weren't always the villain," Remus replied, the assurance in his voice making her a little more sure as well.

She shook her head, "No, but he had a talent for making me feel like I was. I don't know," she shrugged, "It's just still hard for me to handle I guess. He could really make me hate myself."

Remus looked at her silently, torn between asking more question and just letting it go. He had a knack for getting people to open up to him (whether he wanted them to or not), but this was different. He felt more as though he were prying for information. Sonata wanted to talk – he could tell – it was just a question of whether she was comfortable enough yet. After another few seconds of silent debate, he decided to let it go. After all, he didn't have much business asking about her ex-boyfriend when they'd only spent a few hours together.

"I'll tell you about it sometime," Sonata offered, "Just not tonight. It's sort of a long story and I don't want – " _I don't want you to think badly of me, I don't want to blow my chance with you before I even have one._ " I don't want to be too tired for our first day tomorrow," she finished lamely.

"Oh, yeah. Of course. I guess it is pretty late isn't it?"

"Pretty early, I'd say."

He smiled, "That's what I meant."

They continued walking in silence until a split in the hallway.

"Well," Sonata said, preparing to go left, "I guess I'll see you in a few hours."

"Good night," Remus said.

"Good morning," she replied, and with a wave, she turned the corner and disappeared. Seconds later though, her head popped back into view.

"And Remus," she called quietly. He turned around and looked at her expectantly.

"I'd like to hear what you were really up to tonight sometime. Sleepwalking?" she shook her head, "I hardly think so."

And with that, she was gone.

Remus stood alone in the hall for a few moments, shaking his head. If Sonata only knew what she was talking about – if she only knew the real reason. He shook his head. He could never tell her, of course. Somehow he doubted she would understand. How could she? No one understood. No one but James, Sirius, and Peter.

He sighed, running a hand through his hair and wishing that he could have a real chance with her. "But life isn't fair," he said aloud, "Life is never fair."

It had become Remus Lupin's mantra over the course of his first sixteen years. His condition was always difficult for him to deal with, but sometimes – like tonight, when he felt so close to normal, yet still so isolated – it seemed impossible.

He felt tears begin to form in his eyes, but he shook them away.

Crying would never fix what he was.

**A/N: Poor remus : ( I promise things will start to look up for him! Reviews would be wonderfully appreciated. **


	4. On the subject of the weekend

**A/N: Sorry it's been sooo long since I've updated! I got back to school for Resident Assistant training and it's a 12 hour a day pain. But never fear, Remus and Sonata are here!**

_I truly loathe Arithmancy on Fridays._

Remus smiled to himself at the scribbled note Sonata had just passed him. They were three weeks into classes, and while it had seemed at first that Professor Laurel's Advanced Arithmancy class would be a cake walk, it was starting to become clear that the short, brisk little witch had fooled them all.

The truth was that Sonata loved Arithmancy, and Remus knew it. She found it soothing, the way one could systematically figure out the future based on calculations of names and numbers. Practical, she had said once, and creative. But the class dragged on for two hours every Friday afternoon, and it was honestly a bit much to take. There was only a half hour to go, but the shouts of students who were already free for the weekend could be heard through the open window. Fall had arrived at Hogwarts, and the strangely mild weather still tempted even the most studious to spend as much time as possible outside.

"So then, can anyone tell me why it is that some say Arithmancy calculations are more difficult to decipher today than they were, say one hundred years ago?"

Sonata's had went up and Remus looked over, surprised. He could never figure out how it was she could spend all of class passing notes with him, yet still know exactly what the Professor was talking about.

"Yes, Miss James?"

"It's just that our numbering systems are more advanced now. We have more knowledge of variables such as infinity, as well as the correlation between how many perfect numbers appear in a name or place and what that can mean. There are so many different patterns, and each one is important. It makes the process longer."

Professor Laurel smiled, "Very good Miss James. Well," she sighed, glanced at the hour glass, and then back at the young faces before her. "This has been a very productive few hours, so I don't see anything wrong with letting you all out a bit early. Go enjoy the weather."

Almost before she had finished the sentence, her room was empty.

"How the hell is it that you can pay attention to so many things in that class at once?" Remus asked, catching up with Sonata as she walked down the hall.

"Well first of all, I'm a girl." Remus rolled his eyes, "And second of all, I don't know, I just can. I'm a Ravenclaw remember?" She adopted a pompous walk and ridiculous accent as she said, "We _are _the most clever darling."

"Don't forget humble."

"Never."

Since classes had begun, the pair had settled into a strange friendship. Not strange to them, of course, but to those who saw it happen it seemed like the most unlikely thing in the world. Shy, quiet, rule-following Remus Lupin, getting along with a girl like Sonata James? She had a reputation for being a bit of a wild child with little regard for the rules, and for the life of them not one student could understand what she wanted with Remus. It was clear they weren't together, but did they want to be? Did she want something from him? Was he trying to reform her? Or was it possible that for some unfathomable reason, they simply got along.

"Well hello you two," came the voice of Sirius Black. Sonata gave a mock groan as she felt one of his arms settle around her shoulder, knowing that the other one had just enveloped Remus. "How are we doing this fine Autumn day?"

"I'm not going to go out with you Sirius," Sonata said.

"Now what makes you think I would even ask?" Sirius asked innocently.

She laughed, "Because you ask every time you see me you lovable git."

Sirius shrugged, "Its habit by now. And I like to hear rejection once in awhile. It keeps me in my place."

Remus listened to the playful banter between his friends and smiled. At first he had been jealous of the easy and obvious bond between Sirius and Sonata. He was the sort of guy everyone expected her to be with. But it only took a few moments with them to know that they were too similar for anything romantic to work out. Though the immediate shine Sirius had taken to Sonata still remained, it had turned into a brotherly affection. The bullied each other and laughed at each other and generally got along the way siblings would, and Remus was immensely glad of that for more reasons than he wanted to admit to himself.

The truth was that the original pull he'd felt toward Sonata was only getting stronger as they spent more time together. They had taken to meeting at least once a week at the library to do homework together, but they usually ended up talking for hours before any work actually got completed. On occasion they still met on their way to the kitchens, both awake for one reason or another. Remus treasured the conversations he had with her. She was bright, funny, and at while at times she was an open book, Remus also knew she could shut away her emotions at the drop of a hat, able to cover any sensitive situation with humor before quickly changing the subject. She was an enigma, and he was afraid he was starting to love her for it.

"So, Hogsmeade this weekend Moony?" Sirius asked, nudging Remus in the side and dragging him from his thoughts.

"But of course. I've been craving a butterbeer for the last three days."

"What about you Sonny?"

Sonata nodded, having reprimanded Sirius for using her nickname so many times that she didn't even bother anymore, "I think so. That is, if you'll let me tag along with your gang of merry men. Alyssa and Genevie are going with their _boyfriends_," she emphasized the word and followed it with a melodramatic swoon.

"Turned into a man-hating feminist have we?"

"No no, just a disgruntled friend."

"Actually Sirius, I'm surprised you aren't going with a date," Remus remarked.

"Yeah, I am too. But since Sonata here has turned me down," He gave her a playful wink, "I guess it's going to be a stag day. Plus one."

"What about James?" Remus asked, "Any luck with Lily?"

Sirius gave a short laugh, "Hardly. If he keeps up with this I think we can expect him to remain single for his entire life. That girl will barely look at him. Speaking of girls …." Sonata and Remus followed his gaze to a pretty blonde Hufflepuff passing by.

"Gotta run mates," he said, and disappeared after her, only turning around briefly to yell back to them, "The hunt is afoot!"

"He is certainly a character," Sonata remarked.

"Oh I don't know, I can think of a few more colorful names," Remus replied, and the two began to laugh.

-----

"Wait, Sonata is coming with us to Hogsmeade tomorrow?" James asked, flopping down on his stomach to face Remus, whose bed stood across from his own.

"Yeah, so?"

"So? SO? You're practically in love with her mate."

"I am not."

"Look, he's blushing," Peter said.

"Wormtail's right, your face is as red as a tomato."

"Shut up Padfoot. It is not."

"It's pretty damn close."

Remus groaned and put a pillow over his head.

"All I'm saying," James continued, "Is that she's coming with us. And you obviously like her. I see you two in the library. Your flirting is so obvious it would even make Sirius ashamed."

"Heeyy."

"Oh shut up Padfoot you know it's true."

Sirius shrugged in acceptance.

"Anyway, tomorrow is the day to make your move. The three of us will just sort of, you know, slip away for a bit. And you two can trot over to The Three Broomsticks for some alone time."

Remus removed his head from the pillow. It did sounds tempting, just the two of them in the cozy little pub. Maybe he actually could get up the courage to say something.

"You might have a point," he said finally.

"I think we do," James replied.

"I second that," Peter piped up.

"I don't know..."

"Remus," James said, sitting up and giving his friend a serious look, "It's been nearly a month. You need to say something now or forever hold your peace."

"Bit dramatic Jamesie," Sirius remarked.

"Dramatic, possible. But definitely true."

Remus was silent for a moment before taking a deep breath. "Okay, I stand defeated. Tomorrow I will officially confess to Sonata that I'm … erm … well you know. That, that I like her."

"And by all means," Sirius said, "Use those exact words. She'll be unable to resist your - dare I say - Shakespearean eloquence."

Remus promptly threw a pillow at him.

**A/N: So, who's excited for the next chapter? (everyone raises their hand) Brilliant. I promise I will try to get it up asap! In the meantime, reviews make my day very happy. **


	5. At The Three Broomsticks

**A/n: Sorry it's taken sooo long for the next update. Life keeps getting in the way. Enjoy!!**

Sonata awoke to the rumble of thunder outside. Groaning, she rolled over and covered her head with her blanket. She was just dreaming this bad weather, surely it would be gone when she checked the window again.

Unfortunately, she had no such luck. The rain had begun overnight and continued to patter down on the grounds of the castle, giving everything a strangely blurry look. When Sonata got out of bed, a cool draft shivered around her ankles.

"Really?" she muttered, glaring at the window in distaste, "Perfect weather all week, and now this." With a sigh, she opened up her trunk and pulled out a white sweater and a pair of jeans, digging down to the bottom for the blue umbrella she had packed.

After a quick stop in the great hall to get toast, she trotted across the hall to meet The Marauders. It was then that Sonata realized she was giving herself a mental pep talk.

_It's just another trip to Hogsmeade. _She reminded herself, _it's just another day with the guys. Sure, you put a little more effort into yourself, but you're going out and about. There's nothing strange about wanting to look pretty. Damn, Remus looks cute. Shut up brain, shut up!_

Sonata reached the boys and offered a bright smile, "Morning," she said, eyeing Remus in particular. He was wearing a thick red turtleneck sweater, and she was surprised at the flip-flop in her stomach when he gave her one of his cute, nervous smiles.

"Morning Sunny," Sirius ruffled her hair, and she rolled her eyes at him, "Ready for a bright and happy day of adventures?"

"As always," she replied with a wry smile.

The quartet headed out into the midmorning drizzle laughing and chattering, though Sonata couldn't help but notice that Remus was being a bit more quiet than usual.

"Everything okay Rem?" She asked, falling in step with him a bit behind the other three Marauders.

"What? Oh yeah, yeah. Fine. I'm just off in my own world today I guess."

James glanced back and the pair of them, and poked Sirius and Peter, nodding in their direction. The three boys smiled, and began to put their plan into action.

"Well," James said, turning around, "I don't know about anyone else, but personally I think a stop to Madam Puttifoot's is in order."

"You're kidding," Peter said, "James, I wouldn't go to that place if it was – ouch!" He was silenced by a quick elbow to the side, courtesy of Sirius, who gave him a look that clearly said "remember our plan to let Remus and Sonata have their alone time?"

"I mean … Puddifoot's, yeah. I … love it there." Peter followed that statement with the most unconvincing smile anyone had ever seen.

"I know it's pretty gross," James said, doing his best to cover things up, "But I overheard Lily saying she might go there today, so it's worth a shot."

"Ah yes, we must help Prongsie win his love!" Sirius proclaimed, flinging his arms about dramatically.

Sonata laughed and turned to Remus, "Do you wanna go with them?"

He hesitated for a moment, before shaking his head. "That place is a little much for me."

"Yeah, me too. So … how about The Three Broomsticks? It's definitely cold enough for a butterbeer."

Remus smiled, "Exactly what I was thinking." He caught up to the other three mauraders. "Sonata and I are gonna head to The Three Broomsticks," He said, trying to sound casual, "So um, we'll catch up with you lot later."

"Sure you will," Sirius replied, giving him an obvious wink, "Don't worry Moony, we won't wait up."

Remus gave him a playful punch in the arm, then headed back to where Sonata was waiting.

"Away we go?" She asked.

"Away we go," he replied, and promptly offered his arm.

"Why my good sir, how kind of you."

"If you will permit me a moment of honesty dear lady, my chivalry does have a lot to do with the fact that you have an umbrella, and I don't … And it's starting to rain."

Sonata rolled her eyes, but was happy to hook her arm through his and open up her umbrella.

"You know," she remarked, "We could probably just magically repel this rain."

"But then I wouldn't have an excuse to get close to you," Remus replied.

Sonata looked at him, wondering if he was aware of how soft his voice had just gotten. He turned to face her, but looked away just as quickly and cleared his throat.

"Sorry," he said, "It's just …"

"You don't have to apologize Remus," she cut off quickly, " …Maybe I look for ways to get close to you too."

They reached the door to The Three Broomsticks, and Sonata closed her umbrella. Inside the pub it was warm and cozy, with a fire blazing and very few empty seats. Sonata grabbed them a table while Remus ordered two butterbeers from Madam Rosmerta, the bartendress who had just started work at the beginning of the school year.

"Well," Remus said, sitting down across from Sonata and sliding her drink across the table, "To what should we toast?"

"Hmm," Sonata thought long and hard, "How about … " her gaze went behind Remus's head to a dart board on the opposite wall.

"How about to a friendly game of darts?" She asked with a laugh.

"What?" Remus turned and saw the board.

"I win, you buy the next round. You win, I buy it. Deal?" She offered her hand.

Remus looked at it, thinking of how much he'd rather kiss it than shake it. But would that be too much?

"Deal," he replied, giving her hand a firm shake.

The two got up, and spent the next half hour in a challenging game. Sonata seemed to be very much a hit or miss player. When she was good, she was good – but when she was bad … well, the pub suffered a few more holes in the wall than it had perhaps started with. Remus, on the other hand was a bit more steady. Each time she made a throw, Sonata promised herself that after the next one, she would say something to Remus about how she felt. But the next one came, and the next one, and still she couldn't get up the courage to tell him.

Little did she know, he was having the exact same problem.

"Damn it Rem, I think you might be winning," Sonata remarked, leaning against the wall and sipping on her butterbeer.

"It's all in the wrist," Remus replied, making his throw.

"Hah, right. I'll remember that."

"Back in a minute," he said, not so accidentally brushing past her on his way to the loo. After that, it only took his casual look back as he walked away to make her sure of what she had suspected for the past few weeks. Remus liked her just as much as she liked him.

Sonata sighed, sitting back down at the table and finishing her drink.

_We need to talk about this, _she told herself firmly, _As soon as he gets back, I'll say something. _

As if on cue, Remus returned, sliding his chair a little closer to hers before sitting down.

"So," Sonata said brazenly, "Are we going to talk about this?"

Remus looked startled for a moment, but quickly recovered himself, brushing his amber hair nervously away from his eyes, "Er, yeah. I mean …"

"Sorry, that was probably a little bold. I've just trying to get up the courage all afternoon to say something, so I thought maybe if I just blurted it out …" Sonata finished with a nervous laugh.

"It's okay," Remus put his hand shyly over hers, "I feel the exact same way."

"I really like you Remus."

"I really like you too Sonata. I can barely pay attention in Arithmancy with you sitting so close to me. Those little winks you give me when you're writing a note to me instead of paying attention to what the professor is saying, the way you shake your hair back before you raise your hand to answer a question, the smile you get when we're all chatting together and you know you found the perfect way to one-up Sirius..."

"You notice all that?"

"Of course," Remus replied, before adding quietly, "You're wonderful."

He looked up to find Sonata watching him with an intense look in her eyes.

"Come here," she said, pulling him toward her.

When their lips met, Remus felt his heart flip upside down and sideways in his chest. It was perfect, it was beautiful, it was everything a kiss should be.

And in that moment, Remus Lupin forgot he was a Werewolf. He forgot about his ugly secret and the complications it would forever add to his life.

He was just a boy, kissing a girl.

**A/N: Reviews are so very delightful – I'll try to have the next chapter up soon!**


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